Mary Badham and Gregory Peck in the 1962 film of To Kill A Mockingbird. Photograph: Allstar/Cinetext/UI

Harper Lee’s novel edges out previous favourites Pride and Prejudice and The Lord of the Rings.

By Alison Flood

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird has replaced previous favourites The Lord of the Rings and Pride and Prejudice as the nation’s most-loved read.

The classic novel topped a poll of more than 6,000 people for World Book Night, with JRR Tolkien’s fantasy coming in sixth place after heading the BBC’s Big Read in 2003, when three quarters of a million votes were cast. Jane Austen’s evergreen romance came in second, after romping in in first in a poll of 2,000 for World Book Day in 2007.

The World Book Night survey saw over 6,000 people submit the top 10 titles they most love to read, give and share. More than 8,000 books were suggested, with Lee’s story of Scout Finch growing up in the American south receiving the most nominations, with 676 votes. Second place went to Pride and Prejudice (521 votes), with Markus Zusak’s modern children’s novel, The Book Thief, coming in third (489), Jane Eyre fourth (415) and Audrey Niffenegger’s The Time Traveler’s Wife fifth (405).